


She Came from the Lagoon

by solidburnreturned



Category: Trolls (2016), Trolls: The Beat Goes On (Cartoon)
Genre: Drama & Romance, F/F, Forbidden Love, Lesbians, Secret Relationship, because im not sure if theres an audience for a lesbian mertroll au with my own ocs lol, definitely a classic mermaid/mot-a-mermaid love story going on here, got some shape of water elements going on here for sure, im writing this mostly for myself, mermaid au, mertroll
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-21
Updated: 2019-09-22
Packaged: 2020-05-15 22:36:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,276
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19305229
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/solidburnreturned/pseuds/solidburnreturned
Summary: Mack finally finds the source of a beautiful voice she'd been hearing from the lagoon for weeks, but it's not from any troll she's ever met; it's not even from a troll, really. As she finds herself falling for this mysterious mertroll, the mertroll finds herself equally enthralled by this curious, rather flirtatious visitor, unaware of Mack's secret obligations and a threat that looms over their growing relationship.





	1. A Voice in the Murk

**Author's Note:**

> im back on my bullshit! now with a mermaid au lmao  
> im still writing for rainbow arcs, dont worry!! i just got this idea in my head and really had the need to work on it immediately lol
> 
> here are refs for the characters!
> 
> mack: https://solidburnreturned.tumblr.com/post/182029953410/solidburnreturned-new-ref-sheet-for-mack-since
> 
> mertroll pepper: https://solidburnreturned.tumblr.com/post/185747300085/working-on-my-silly-mertroll-au-for-mackpepperi
> 
> regular pepper (for personality traits): https://solidburnreturned.tumblr.com/post/182059018790/new-ref-sheets-for-pepper-too
> 
> dwight: https://solidburnreturned.tumblr.com/post/176731078680/more-trolls-because-lol-its-just-too-fun-to-design
> 
> toad: https://solidburnreturned.tumblr.com/post/179667711230/more-hooligans-join-the-party
> 
> pike: https://solidburnreturned.tumblr.com/post/183455214580/new-ref-for-pike
> 
> enjoy!!

There it was again. Mack’s ears twitched to the left, her hand freezing in place as she stretched to reach a low-hanging strawberry. Wafting through the forest was a smooth, swelling voice, singing just loud enough to be caught by the pink troll’s large ears. Still, she couldn’t make out the words, and the location of the singer was rather ambiguous as well. She’d heard the same voice earlier this week while getting berries for fabric dye, and many times before that. Every time she tried to investigate, however, the voice would stop just as she was getting close, leaving her frustrated and usually a fair distance from the village. 

Setting her jaw, Mack turned towards where she thought the voice could be coming from, moving slowly as if nervous that any sudden move would scare the song away. She _had_ to know who the troll was that would sing these funky, sultry ballads and bops. If the troll matched the voice at all in appealability, she most definitely wanted to meet them. To just talk, of course. Maybe hang out if they turned out to be a pretty girl. 

Moving quickly but quietly, Mack set out on her hunt. She wove through trees and shuffled through tall grasses, careful to not trip on vines or roots, ears straining to follow the voice as it steadily got louder. Eventually, Mack made it to the village’s enormous lagoon. Nearly every time she’d followed the singing it had brought her here, to the point where she wondered if her friend Pike was playing a prank on her. After much prodding, however, it seemed that they were as dumbfounded as Mack about the source of the singing. They lived happily in a pod that hung over the lagoon, spending much of their time in the murky greenish-blue water. Frankly, the lagoon made Mack apprehensive; borderline frightened, even. The water was anything but clear, full of plants ranging from the lagoon weed to towering trees with gnarled roots, festering with creatures like slimy eels, bugs capable of a powerful bite, and many, many different sorts of fish. The air there was always thick with moisture, fog often still hanging around late into the morning, the mist extending over the water for what seemed like miles. Mack always got the urge to leave the creepy place once she happened upon it, but the song drifting through the mossy vines and tall cattails drew her back in. 

Hopping from stone to stone, careful not to slip and plummet into the surely cold water, Mack kept her ears trained on the voice. Sure, getting her hair and clothes wet was not preferable, and having her makeup ruined also sounded unpleasant, but it was more the chance of being eaten by some kind of horrible creature with huge fangs that compelled her to not even let a hair touch the glass-like water. The song was loud now, the words audible: it seemed to be some sort of love song, the melody slow and melancholic. She’d never gotten this close before. Her heart thumped in her chest, the beat nearly matching that of the song, urging her to move faster. Scrambling over roots that wound through the lagoon water, Mack craned her neck. All these trees and thick aquatic grasses made it almost impossible to see anything. That, and the thick canopy of drooping leaves up above blocked out nearly any and all sunlight. A chill went up Mack’s spine. An idea that had not crossed her mind before suddenly surfaced, making her freeze mid-step: what if this was a trap? A beautiful song to lure in unsuspecting trolls to their doom? The thought made her swallow hard, senses now on high alert. Still, though, she pressed on. The curiosity was just too much. She would just be...extra cautious. 

Just as Mack felt like she was right on top of the voice’s source, trotting through some bushes across from where she entered the lagoon, the song stopped abruptly. Mack came to a screeching halt, heart in her throat, but it was too late. A loud splash sounded from her left, and by the time Mack had burst out from the bushes, there was barely even a ripple in the water. She groaned and stomped a foot in frustration. The troll must’ve been soaking and heard her loud romping through the leaves before getting out and running off. Whoever this troll was, they were fast. And unusually shy. 

With a defeated huff, Mack plunked herself down at the water’s edge to catch her breath, taking in the muddled, normal, boring sounds of the lagoon. 

Which was quickly interrupted by a flurry of splashes and gasps a few yards away.

Mack jumped right back to her feet, startled, stumbling to get over to the sounds of distress. What if some troll had slipped and fallen into the water? The lagoon was deep in these parts; it was very easy to lose your footing on the slippery moss and fall right into the murk, banks high enough to make getting back out a challenge. Expecting to see a sight similar to this, Mack stopped dead in her tracks as she came upon the scene.

Yes, someone was struggling...but it wasn’t a troll. At least, she didn’t _think_ it was...the creature she watched as she peaked out from behind a rotting stump had a large afro of tan hair, slightly sodden from the water. She had other trademark troll features: a big nose, large ears, glitter freckles...but her deep red skin was covered in striped and spotted patterns of bright and dark reds, black, and striking white. Her thick arms and large hands clutched at the edge of the earth as she tried to pull herself out of the water. Mack could do nothing but stare as the cryptid thrashed and grunted, three major traits she had seizing the pink troll’s attention: the bright red gills on her neck, the whites of her eyes replaced with a black that morphed into her bright red irises, and the most striking thing of all: the large, powerful tail she possessed, writhing as she tried to propel herself out of the water. Her tail had the similar red-to-black gradient that her eyes had, with the same spots that covered her upper body gracing her scales. Her fins and the thin membrane of her tri-split ears was black with a tan stripes and more glitter freckles. The power and muscle in the apparent mertroll’s tail was evident, so Mack was confused as to why she was having such a hard time getting out of the water- until she could see the rope trap wrapped tightly around the end of her appendage. Panic was starting to set into the mertroll, evident by her rapid breaths and wide eyes. She was beginning to exhaust herself. 

Mack was conflicted. She wanted to help the poor thing, set her free so she could go off and recuperate, but she was also rather frightened. She could see from even a distance that the mertroll had large, pointed canines, and she packed plenty of muscle in her small body. Plus, one good smack from that tail would probably send her off into the lagoon, never to be seen again. On the other hand, if she left the creature there, tied up and helpless, she would either become an easy meal for a passing animal, or become exhausted and possibly drown, unable to swim and get water through her gills or swim to the surface for a breath. Mack knew she would have to decide quickly; the mertroll was slipping, and the rope was only getting tighter. On impulse, she stepped out from behind the stump into the mertroll’s view. Immediately, the aquatic troll became alarmed, her fins standing on end and muscles tensing even more. The two stared at each other for a time, both seemingly unsure of what to do and weighing their options. 

“P-Please,” the mertroll suddenly choked out, making Mack jump. “Please, help me. I-I’ll give you anything, just...just let me go.”

Not expecting the mertroll to talk, let alone speak a language that Mack could understand, Mack just stared openly at her. The desperation on the creature’s face grew with each passing moment Mack spent standing still, completely stunned. When tears started to run down the mertroll’s face, Mack snapped out of her trance, stepping forward to try and comfort her. 

“H-Hey...uh...it’s okay, just...uh, just bring your t-tail over and I’ll get you out, okay?”

The mertroll’s ears fluttered in relief and she swung her body around with a heave, barely still able to keep her fingers dug into the earth. “Please, hurry...”

Working quickly, Mack pulled a pair of scissors from her hair and began slicing at the rope, doing her best to stay focused on her task and not have her eyes wander over to the mertroll’s face. She had some of the most beautiful patterns over her face that Mack had ever seen...it almost annoyed her that a bunch of curly bangs were partially obscuring them. The mertroll didn’t look at her, face contorted with a mixture of pain, effort, and fear. 

Finally, the last strands of rope were sliced away and the mertroll’s body swung back out, straightening itself as she heaved a sigh of relief. When Mack smiled at her, all she could manage was a heavy blush before abruptly ducking into the lagoon, body barely visible as she slipped away into the depths.

“H-Hey! Wait!”

But it was too late; the mertroll was gone, leaving no trace but the now muddied and torn moss. Mack stared at where she had disappeared with wide, astonished eyes. Then it hit her.

The mertroll’s voice matched the one that she had heard singing.

\---

“She was beautiful, Pike. I...It felt like a dream.”

The navy-splotched troll bounced their eyebrows at Mack as they finished their sip of tea. “Sounds like maybe it _was_ a dream.”

Mack shook her head firmly, her own tea untouched and growing cold in her hand. “No, no...It was real. _She’s_ real. There’s a...a mertroll in the lagoon.”

It had only been a week, but Mack couldn’t stop thinking about the mysterious encounter. She had to see her again. But the creature was as elusive as ever, if not more-so now: Mack hadn’t even heard a note of song. 

A short snort of laughter. “I think you’ve been talking to Dwight and Toad too much.”

Mack’s attention snapped to her friend in an instant. “Have they seen her too?”

“They say they have.” They brushed their long, silver hair out of their eyes with a dismissive sigh. “They even think they almost caught it once. I think maybe they both hadn’t slept in a while and found a big, weird fish.”

Ears fluttering in excitement, Mack leaned forward. “Do you think Dwight is out on his boat right now?”

A loose shrug. “Probably. Wh-”

“Thanks for the tea-” The still full cup was plunked onto the table, “-but I gotta run!”

“Don’t go chasing something that’s not real, Mack!” Pike cried after her as she darted out the door, sliding down the ladder to the soft moss below.

Disregarding Pike’s warning, Mack ran off to find Dwight’s houseboat, which sat somewhere on the lagoon nearby. Dwight knew the lagoon better than almost anyone; he was a fisherman and a lagoon tour guide (although more trolls came to him for his fish rather than his tours), spending almost all his time on the water of the huge bog. Toad often joined him when the muddy-green troll wasn’t off getting lost in the woods somewhere, happily exploring the lagoon and, apparently, spotting aquatic monsters. 

Once Mack had managed to find Dwight’s large wooden boat, she called loudly for the yellow troll’s attention, too eager to hold herself back. After a few shouts, a shock of orange hair popped up on deck, followed by the captain himself.

“Mack! Hey, what’s up? You want a tour or some fish?”

“Both!” Mack laughed as the ramp was lowered down far enough to clamor aboard. “I wanna know about a mertroll!”

Dwight’s sharply pointed ears flew up in an instant. “Mertroll?” His eyes darted from side to side, as if paranoid someone was hiding in the swamp and listening in. “Have you seen it as well?” Mack nodded eagerly and Dwight clapped his hands, a huge smile coming over his face. “Where? When?”

As Mack was ushered below deck to the small living space, plunking down on a not-so-soft cot, she told her whole story to the eager troll: chasing down the music, finding the trapped mertroll, freeing her-

“Wait, you let her _go?”_ Dwight spluttered.

“Well, yeah!” Mack laughed, raising an eyebrow. “She would’ve died if I left her there.”

Dwight ran his hands over his face, seeming to groan inwardly. “...I guess I should check my traps more often...”

“Wait, that was _your_ snare?”

“Of course!” Dwight snatched a map of the lagoon out from his hair, spreading the paper over the table. “I’ve been hunting her for years. Ever since Toad and I nearly caught her six years ago...” He pointed to several different red X’s on the map, spread out over the entire lagoon. “I’ve only caught glimpses of her since...I can’t believe you _spoke_ to her!”

Brow furrowed, Mack gave Dwight an uneasy stare. “...Why do you want to find her so bad?”

“I wanna study her! I mean, I’d love to do so in her natural habitat, but she makes that hard when she swims away every time I get close.” He pointed to a spot on the east side of the map, marked with a group of red crosses. “I’ve seen her here the most; it’s one of the only places in the lagoon that gets any actual sunlight. I think she likes to sun herself there. There’s a lot of flat rocks and a waterfall with fresh, clean water...a mertroll’s paradise, I’m sure.”

The thought of the dark red mertroll stretched out on some rocks, scales and skin glinting in the sunlight, crash of the waterfall mixing with that low, funky singing voice...Mack caught herself daydreaming and gave her head a quick shake, fighting off a dark pink blush. Dwight didn’t seem to notice, too busy telling about other times he’d supposedly seen the mertroll in the lagoon.

“I’ve tried everything to attract her...I’ve played the same sort of music that she likes to sing, laid out fish and lake weed for her to eat, tried different calls...nothing.” The yellow troll stroked his wispy mustache, eyes heavy with frustration. “I really can’t believe you spoke to her...and let her go...”

Clearing her throat, Mack drummed her fingers on the table. “Well...maybe we could go looking for her!”

“She knows the sound of my boat too well...I swear, even if I try rowing to her in a dingy, it’s like she can _smell_ me...”

Well, that didn’t really come as a surprise to the pink troll; the smell of salty bait and fish really did follow Dwight. 

Mack’s ears pricked as she suddenly had an idea pop into her head. “What if I tried to find her myself? Like, use me as bait? I helped her out once, so maybe she knows I’m not a threat-”

The captain gasped, practically jumping in his seat. “You could maybe gain her trust for me! Get information and data...learn all about her species...” Dwight suddenly grew serious, leaning in towards a still excited mack. “Are you sure? This is potentially dangerous...I don’t know if you noticed, but she’s no weakling, and she has pretty big teeth-”

“Pshh-” Mack gave his shoulder a light shove. “I’m not worried...if she wanted to eat me or something, she had the perfect opportunity last week. I think it’s fine.”

“Well...if you’re sure...” His wide, eager grin returned. “I have an idea for your first mer-mission.”


	2. Promise

She had to admit, the lagoon didn’t look half bad when there was some sunlight shining on it. But it was also starting to get a little boring. Mack had sat out by the mertroll’s supposed sunning rocks for days, from when the sun went up until it went back down, hoping to just catch a glimpse of the creature at this point. Her patience was running thin, but Dwight encouraged her, suggesting new methods of attracting the mertroll each day: bringing her fresh fish and leaving it by the water to be grabbed (it was ignored completely except by a handful of flies), singing to try and tempt her into a duet, and even trying a few of the screeching calls that Dwight had demonstrated for her. All had ended in failure, and Mack was starting to worry that maybe something had happened to the mertroll. 

Still holding out a bit of hope, Mack prepared herself for what was probably going to be a very boring, but very hot and sunny day by the sunning rocks. She took shelter under the shade of a weeping willow, watching the water’s edge carefully for any sort of movement. Her face was quickly blank with boredom, and after about an hour of sitting there with her arms crossed, yawning and fighting to keep her eyes open, the pink troll finally dozed off. 

Little did Mack know, she was perfectly camouflaged in her position, shielded by the drooping leaves of the tree and blending in with the tall, flower-filled grasses. As a result, before long, the mertroll suddenly popped her head up by the water’s edge, looking around with wide eyes for any sign of danger- or nosy land-trolls. Once she determined the coast was clear, she seemed to let out a sigh of relief and dragged herself up out of the water with a splash, onto the warm, black rocks. 

The splashing woke up Mack immediately, but she stayed perfectly still, eyes focusing instantly on the mertroll that was happily settling down on her belly across the hot stones. The creature’s ears were still perked for any suspicious noise, but her eyes were shut, mouth turned up in a relaxed smile as she basked. Mack was anything but relaxed now, heart in her throat as her eyes traveled up and down the mertroll’s body. Her tail swung lazily in the air, splashing a bit in the water and flicking droplets over her body. Mack noticed for the first time (with some sadness) that her tail fins were badly torn, one half nearly gone completely. Even the flesh around the tip of her tail had scarred over chunks missing from it. What on earth had caused that...some sort of water beast? Mack’s curiosity was starting to grow, but she kept herself still; any movement was sure to scare the mertroll off back into the murk for who knows how long. She would have to get a little crafty.

As quietly as she could, Mack reached up into her hair, rooting around for a few seconds before pulling out a bit of the lunch she’d brought for herself: a plump blueberry. Mack had no idea if this would entice the mertroll, but...it was worth a shot. With a silent deep breath, Mack tossed the blueberry towards the far side of the rocks, away from the lagoon and closer to the waterfall. The second the blueberry bounced off the ground, the mertroll sat up, eyes snapped open and ears spread wide. Mack sat completely still, not even daring to breathe as those dark eyes scanned over her and eventually rested on the lonely blueberry. The mertroll looked suspicious, doing another quick check of her surroundings. Mack’s hopes grew as she heard a loud growl come from the stomach of the creature. With a final flick of her tail, the mertroll started to drag herself towards the blueberry, moving quickly, wanting to get back to the safety of the water’s edge. Mack watched closely as the mertroll reached out for the blueberry, trying to only get as close as she needed to. The second a red hand landed on the berry, Mack leapt out from her hiding spot, using her body as a barrier between the mertroll and the water. 

“AH! Hi!” Mack blurted out, arms outstretched as wide as she was smiling.

The mertroll’s body flailed as she let out a scream of shocked terror, almost becoming airborne for a moment as she twisted around to face the pink troll. This reaction scared Mack, causing her to let out a shriek of her own, jumping back and almost toppling back into the water. 

“Oh, sorry! Sorry!” Mack put her hands out defensively, trying to calm the panicking creature. “You okay?”

The mertroll said nothing, chest heaving as she pressed herself into the ground, as if trying to sink into it and escape. Mack took a step closer, prompting her captive guest to shrink back more, her shaking becoming violent. 

“Hey, hey, it’s okay...” Mack paused before kneeling down, trying to seem less threatening. “I’m not gonna hurt you...” She pulled another blueberry out from her hair and took a bite, nodding at the forgotten blueberry near the mertroll’s arm.

The mertroll stared at Mack, her fearful eyes now holding a bit of confusion as well. “...Wh...Why...”

Mack blinked and shrugged, swallowing her bite. “It’s nice to share.”

The mertroll blinked back, eyes darting to the blueberry. Seeing Mack watching her expectantly, she slowly, agonizingly slowly, reached for the berry, sat up, and held it in her lap with trembling hands. Mack smiled at her and took another bite.

“It’s good. I promise.”

The mertroll glanced between her and the blueberry nervously. Food that actually tasted good was not easily found in the lagoon...and she hadn’t eaten yet that day. Mack’s eyes widened as the mertroll opened her maw, large teeth sinking into the berry to bite away over half of it. The juice dribbled down her chin and she quickly wiped it away, face turning bright red, almost obscuring the stripes over her face. 

Mack snickered at this, adjusting to sit a bit more comfortably. “I’m Mack, by the way.”

The mertroll jumped, chewing interrupted as this information was processed. Eventually, once the huge bite was swallowed, the mertroll gulped and responded quite simply, in a tone so soft that Mack almost missed it:

“I’m Pepper.”

“Pepper! Nice to meet you...again. In better circumstances.” Mack finished her last bite of berry with a wink. 

Pepper nodded slowly, finishing her berry as well. “Uhm...th-thanks. For cutting me loose.”

“Well, yeah, of course! Couldn’t just leave you like that.” Mack stretched her legs out in front of her, leaning back on her elbows. 

Silence. Pepper sat still, looking uncomfortable and unsure, arms folded over her chest. A few yards away, Mack just lay there, staring openly at the mertroll. She was hoping Pepper would say more, but she didn’t seem like the biggest talker...She just sat there like a cut flower wilting in the sun. Which was still beating down on the both of them.

“...Can I go now?” Pepper wheezed out suddenly, rubbing her drying gills. 

Mack snorted. “Um, you’ve been free to go for a while.” She pointed at the pool beneath the waterfall, which flowed into the lagoon.

To Mack’s surprise, Pepper scrunched up her face in disgust. “Uh, I’m not about to swim in my drinking water.”

Mack raised her eyebrows and stuck a thumb over her shoulder at the lagoon, smirking a bit. “Okay...still plenty free to leave.”

Eyeing her with suspicion, but desperate to re-wet her agitated gils, Pepper began dragging herself back towards the water, keeping as far away from the pink troll as she could. Any second, she could pull out a rope and tie her up...or get a harpoon and stick her...drape a huge net over her...the possibilities were endless and fueled Pepper to move faster. Unfortunately, she was not very graceful out of water (not that she really was in the water either), and much, much slower. 

“Do you wanna come hang out again tomorrow?” Mack asked, flipping onto her stomach. “I can bring you more fruit. Or whatever you want.”

Pausing at the water’s edge, Pepper gave Mack an extremely bewildered look, before uttering “Hold that thought,” and slipping into the water. 

Mack waited patiently at the water’s edge, hands slapping a beat against the ground beneath her. A minute passed. Then five minutes. Maybe Pepper wasn’t coming back...Mack sighed in frustration. Should’ve seen that one coming. 

Just as she was pushing herself up to leave and head back to Dwight with some good news, Pepper popped up again a few feet away, looking much more refreshed as she rested against a submerged tree root. “You got any raspberries? Cheese? Stuff like that?”

Trying not to look too amused, Mack nodded. “Do you want anything else? Fish?”

A very firm shake of the head. “No, I don’t like fish. Just fruit and cheese and...maybe cake or something is good.”

“You don’t like fish? What do you eat?”

“...Fish, usually.”

“Oh. That sucks.”

Pepper shrugged. “Sometimes fruit will hang low enough that I can jump and grab it. It’s better than eating the bugs and muck.”

Now it was Mack’s turn to look disgusted. Pepper chuckled, her large teeth poking out from her mouth as she did so.

Mack did her best to keep her cool composure, feeling her face get a bit warm. “So...see you tomorrow?”

Tail smacking against the water’s surface, Pepper looked Mack up and down contemplatively, before giving a small nod and ducking back below the surface and swimming away. 

\---

Dwight was ecstatic when Mack gave him her report, writing down everything he could as she described the encounter. He couldn’t believe the fact that Pepper had a name, that she hated the taste of fish, that she had a special place for fresh drinking water, and that she seemed fairly friendly. Still, he gave a stern warning to Mack, cautioning her that Pepper could be lying and waiting to catch her off guard. The pink troll just rolled her eyes a bit to herself. Pepper seemed more scared of _her_ than anything. Which was funny, given that the red mertroll seemed to have the better defense of the two. Regardless, Mack agreed to start carrying a small sharpened stick in her hair...just in case. Dwight practically begged her to only use it in a dire emergency, wanting to get as much information out of Pepper as he could. Mack of course agreed; she had no intentions of hurting anyone. 

The next day, Mack sprung out of bed, headed right over to Dwight’s boat. First, however, she was sure to load up a backpack with raspberries, some kiwi, a couple slices of red velvet cake, and a block of cheddar. She also snatched up a 20 questions game she had; Dwight wanted her to ask Pepper questions, but she didn’t want the mertroll to feel interrogated. 

After a quick stop by Dwight’s boat to get the necessary instructions for getting data, Mack headed off to the sunning rocks. The path she took was about a 20 minute hike, plenty of time to mull over some thoughts about the odd mertroll. Mack wondered what her skin felt like...wondered if it would be slimy and cold like an eel, or maybe feel like just another troll: soft, fuzzy, and warm. Maybe just her tail would feel different? Scaly? Since it was covered in...scales. Maybe some day, Pepper would trust her enough to let her hug her. Or hold her hand maybe? Would Pepper even be interested in that? Had she ever held hands with someone? A wave of sympathy washed over Mack. Pepper must have been lonely...unless maybe there were other mertrolls? Though, that didn’t seem likely...She may have had more than 20 questions to ask Pepper now.

Once Mack arrived at the sunning rocks, she sat on the black stone, soaking in the sun as she waited. Pepper did not keep her waiting long, poking her head up from the water and giving the surface a smack with her tail to alert the pink troll.

“Hey!” Mack sat up and walked over towards Pepper with a smile, shrugging her backpack off. “What’s up?”

Pepper scooted back a bit as Mack approached, still apprehensive. “Um...not much, I guess.” Her eyes studied the obviously full backpack. “What’d you bring?” 

“Treats,” Mack chirped, sticking her red tongue out as she sat down at the water’s edge. “You coming out? Sun’s nice today.”

Pepper, submerged up to her chin, shook her head. “I’m okay.”

Mack shrugged and pulled a slightly overripe raspberry out of her pack, splitting it in half and offering some to Pepper. The mertroll nervously took it, jerking her arm back as soon as the fruit was in her grasp.

“So, like, I literally don’t know anything about you.” Mack bit into the berry. “And you know literally nothing about me.”

Floating a bit on her back to keep the raspberry out of the water, Pepper gave Mack a wary look. “Okay.”

“So...you maybe wanna play 20 questions?”

“...What’s that?”

Mack blinked, surprised. “Oh, we just ask each other 20 questions and you have to be honest about it. Do you wanna play?”

Pepper’s ears folded in on themselves a bit as she swallowed the last of her raspberry, contemplating. “...Do you have more food?”

In an instant, Mack pulled out a slice of kiwi. “How about one bite per question?”

Swimming closer, driven by the succulent look of the green fruit held out of her reach, Pepper nodded and rested her arms up on the land. “Okay. Go ahead.”

A small grin spread over Mack’s as she leaned back onto her elbow. “How old are you?” 

A quick shrug. “I think I’m maybe in my 20s.”

“You don’t know?”

“No...I mean, I think I was born in the Spring, but I’m not sure.” She nodded at the Kiwi and Mack offered it to her to take a bite, which she happily did. “Okay, uh...how old are _you?”_

 _“_ I’m definitely 23.”

Pepper nodded. “Maybe I’m 23.”

“Maybe we could find out.” Mack took a bite of the kiwi for herself. “So...are you the only mertroll in the lagoon?”

Mack almost regretted asking when a depressed look washed over Pepper. “Yeah.” Another bite of kiwi.

“I’m sorry...that must be...pretty boring.”

A solemn nod. “Uh...what’s your village like?”

Mack took a quick minute to describe the colorful, loud village and its happenings, Pepper drinking up every word as she stared at the pink troll with wide, engrossed eyes. All of Mack’s friends, family, coworkers, friendly acquaintances, and of course Queen Poppy were mentioned as well. 

“Gosh...that sounds...wonderful.”

Mack dug a kiwi seed out from between her front teeth. “It’s a lot sometimes, but, yeah, I like it.”

“I wish I could go there...” Pepper huffed out a sigh of longing. “Uh...your turn.”

Recalling Dwight’s list of questions, Mack tried to make the rather scientific question sound as casual as possible: “Um...so do you have lungs, or just gils, or...?”

Again, Pepper shrugged her shoulders. “I have to keep my gils wet or I’ll suffocate, but I can breathe air for a little bit if I need to. But...I don’t know if I have lungs. Maybe.”

“How come you don’t choke when you sit out on the rocks?”

Pepper flicked her tail up out of the water for a moment. “I dump water on my gils every so often when I go sunning with my tail.” It landed back in the water with a small splash. “I think I get to ask you two questions now.”

The pair went back and forth for a while longer, questions ranging from mundane to funny to a bit more prying. Pepper learned that Mack had apparently never been in love, but had many short “flings” with various women from her village. She also was told about Mack’s career in fashion design, her enjoyment of the performance part of her job, and that she had a strong dislike of eggs. In return, Pepper spoke about her faint memories of her parents before she was blown into the lagoon by a storm at a very young age, why she had no whites to her eyes (made camouflage much easier in the dark water), and her desire for any sort of loving, meaningful relationship. All the while, both trolls snacked on the food Mack had brought with her to share, forgetting about the consistency of the 20 questions game and opting to just have more of a free conversation. 

“Well, if you want to get to know trolls from my village, why don’t you just go down to the pier and say hello to visiting trolls?” Mack asked, slightly confused. 

A dark, far away look entered Pepper’s eyes and her fins seemed to almost fan outward. “I used to...I used to try and be friendly to the trolls that would sometimes come through, but...then all they wanted to do was catch me.”

Her own words suddenly seeming to hit her like a brick, Pepper froze, eyes darting over to Mack, who still looked puzzled. Especially now with this newfound fear written all over Pepper’s face. 

“...What?”

The water swirled a bit as Pepper’s body moved away from the bank. “You don’t...w-why are you asking me all these questions? Why do you wanna know so much about me?”

Growing defensive, Mack sat up, eyebrows knitting together. “Well, I though we could be friends-”

“That’s- No, that’s...not a good idea.”

Mack’s heart twisted in her chest as anxiety suddenly seized her. “What? Why??”

“Because-” Pepper swam further away, movements agitated and clumsy. “-then you’ll wanna hang out more, and then you’ll wanna bring your friends to hang out, then your friends will think I’m some sort of monster, and they’ll wanna _catch_ me or _spear_ me-”

“Pepper, no, that’s not-”

“Yes! That’s what happens!” Pepper snapped. “And I’m always stupid and I fall for it! And then-” The mertroll cut herself off, losing her resolve as tears brimmed in her eyes. 

Mack scrambled to the edge of the water, trying to be as close as she could be to Pepper without falling in. “No, I promise, I...I just think you’re really cool and different!”

Pepper was silent, looking as if she was going to dive down into the lagoon any moment. Mack became more frantic, not wanting to lose all of the amazing progress they’d made already. But what could she say to comfort this obviously rattled, jaded being?

“I...Pepper, I’ve never met someone like you in my village, and...it’s not just because you live in the water, it’s because you’re so...unique! Like...you’re chill, and sweet, and...I know it’s kinda weird since we’ve only really talked a few times, but...” Mack swallowed, pulling at the hem of her dress. “I just...really want to get to know you better. You’re new, and exciting, and...you’re the type of troll that I don’t _want_ to share with anyone.”

Digesting Mack’s short declaration, still looking wary and unsure, Pepper floated in place, only visible from the nose up. Her gaze was intense and it made Mack shift involuntarily. Desperately, she hoped that Pepper would see that she was being sincere. She _didn’t_ want to share Pepper...sure, she would talk about her with Dwight, but deep down, she wanted to keep the actual, physical Pepper to herself. It made her feel special, these small interactions with such an otherworldly yet oddly familiar creature. 

“...I...” Pepper swallowed thickly, eyes staring into the water in front of her rather than Mack. “...Just...promise me something?”

Mack nodded, fingers clutching the grassy edge of the water. 

“Keep me a secret.” Pepper swam a bit closer. “You...you seem like a really nice troll. But I know that there are others who...who wouldn’t be interested treating me as nicely as you have. Y’know?”

Nodding solemnly, Mack took a deep, slow breath. She was somewhat relieved that Pepper’s panic seemed to be passing. However, some anxiety of her own was rising. Dwight. What about him...Maybe he would understand? Maybe he would be happy enough with Mack just letting him know that Pepper was okay; still in the lagoon, swimming around, basking, whatnot...Mack didn’t really need to give him much more than that. On the other hand, if he didn’t quite understand...would Pepper really ever have to know? She adamantly avoided Dwight and his boats, according to the yellow troll...They never had to run into each other. Mack didn’t have to tell Pepper about Dwight or his research. And, really, at this point, Mack was more interested in Pepper than helping Dwight. If he asked something that might give him a clue as to where the mertroll was hanging out, Mack didn’t have to answer. He could figure that out for himself. If Pepper wanted this relationship of theirs to be private...Mack would be sure to keep it that way. It wasn’t like Dwight was ever gonna run into Pepper anyway.

A grin spread over Mack’s face. “I promise.”

Pepper smiled back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i didnt forget about this silly fic lol
> 
> more to come, hopefully sooner rather than later

**Author's Note:**

> gosh im so excited to write this silly au......hope u enjoyed!! comments/kudos help motivate me lol


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